Some staff are angry that while cuts are being made across the corporation, about 540 senior managers are sharing a car allowance pot worth £2.9m.

They are entitled to about £7,800 per year or £650 a month if they are in the top grade of senior management and £4,800 or £400 per month if they are in the lower band.

With staff in BBC Monitoring and BBC World Service being made compulsorily redundant and more cuts due across the corporation, some staff have questioned spending on "what is, essentially, free cars".

One branded the payouts "scandalous" and asked how many managers actually need cars for their job. New BBC Trust chairman Lord Patten has pledged to cut back on senior management perks such as private healthcare, and is in talks to axe their bonuses.

In protest at the redundancies being made due to last year's stringent licence fee settlement, two strikes by BBC journalists have already taken place. Union members are now working to rule, refusing to miss lunch breaks or to act up to cover for colleagues.

A BBC spokesperson said: "As with many major organisations, a car allowance is paid to senior members of staff as part of their overall remuneration package and we operate a policy of discounting senior salaries by up to 80% against the market rate. We are on course to cut our senior management salary bill by 25% by the end of the year, and we have set out our plans to reduce the salary bill still further in future."

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